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Richard Sherman: NFL’s Greatest Troll

NFL fans know Richard Sherman as a star cornerback for the Seattle Seahawks. Since his rookie year in 2011, Sherman has become one of the most feared defensive players in the NFL. But even those of you who have never watched a football game should be interested in Follow Channel’s new series chronicling his off-field antics. Why? Because Richard Sherman is a smack-talk extraordinaire.

Aside from his impressive stats on the field, Sherman is better known for his ability to get under people’s skin (not unlike some Break.com commenters). But unlike many would-be smack talkers (and some Break.com commenters), Sherman has the skills and the sense of humor to back it up.

Need proof? Keep reading. And while you’re at it, check out the first episode of Sherman’s new series.

Tom Brady: U Mad Bro?

While playing Tom Brady and the New England Patriots last season, Sherman found himself exchanging pleasantries with the star quarterback. At one point, Brady smugly told Sherman he should come back and see him after the game once the Patriots had won. Unfortunately for Brady, it didn’t work out that way, and the Seahawks’ victory proved to be the perfect opportunity for Sherman to be Sherman. After hunting Brady down and rubbing his face in the loss, he posted this “u mad bro?” pic to his Twitter account.

For those of you who aren’t dialed into the NFL, Detroit Lions’ wide receiver Calvin Johnson goes by the nickname Megatron. A teammate came up with the name because he thought Johnson’s large hands resembled those of the Transformers villain.

So last year when the Seahawks were gearing up to play Detroit, Sherman decided to fight fire with fire by changing his Twitter handle to Optimus Prime, Megatron’s arch nemesis. Granted, Megatron ended up having the last laugh when Detroit won the game. But Sherman ended up with a cool consolation prize in the form of a telephone call from Peter Cullen, the voice actor who plays Optimus Prime in the Transformers films. More than meets the eye.

Twitter is only good for one thing: watching people fight. And when it comes to fights, Richard Sherman is happy to oblige. Last February, Sherman got into it with fellow cornerback Darrelle Revis, claiming that his seasonal stats were comparable to Revis’ career numbers. Sherman’s willingness to mix things up with one of the most respected cornerbacks in the league is somewhat impressive. But at the end of the day, they’re still fighting on Twitter like a couple of high school girls. That said, at least the exchange helped pave the way for this next act of top-notch trolling.

Skip Bayless Smack Down

While appearing on ESPN’s First Take, Sherman wasted no time in going for the jugular of commentator Skip Bayless. When Bayless began asking questions about the previously mentioned Twitter feud with Darrelle Revis, Sherman decided the best course of action was more trash talk. Describing Bayless as “ignorant, pompous, and egotistical,” Sherman went as far as to claim that he was “better at life” than Bayless, which might be true considering Bayless is a grown man who goes by “Skip.”

Trent Williams’s Snaps

If Richard Sherman’s goal is to get under people’s skin, mission accomplished. After this game between the Washington Redskins and the Seattle Seahawks, Redskins’ offensive tackle Trent Williams walked up to Sherman, threatened to punch him in the face, and then quickly followed through with the threat. Normally, I’m all for watching a trash talker get smacked down, but in this case, I can’t help but feel Williams was in the wrong. It’s one thing to punch a guy who is talking smack. But it’s another to do so while wearing a football helmet. Poor form. Advantage: Sherman.